Terms & Conditions

Harrisons Homes Estate Agents – Terms & Conditions

1. This is an estate agency agreement between the vendor/s named in the Confirmation of Instructions (You) and Harrisons Homes Ltd, 2 West Street, Sittingbourne, ME10 1AW (Us, We) relating to the marketing for sale of the property named in the Confirmation of Instructions at the agreed asking price. (No survey of the property has been conducted and therefore the agreed asking price is not a valuation).

2. Where we act as Sole Agent, you will be liable to pay remuneration to us in addition to any other costs or charges agreed if at any time unconditional contracts for sale of the property are exchanged:

• With a purchaser introduced by us during the period of agency or
• With whom we had negotiations about the Property during that period or,
• With a purchaser introduced by another agent during that period.

3. Where we act as Joint Agent, you will be liable to pay remuneration to us in addition to any other costs or charges agreed if at any time unconditional contracts for sale of the property are exchanged:

• With a purchaser introduced by us or any other jointly appointed agent during the period of agency or
• With whom we or any jointly appointed agent had negotiations about the Property during that period or,
• With a purchaser introduced by another agent during that period.

4. Where we act as Multiple Agent, you will be liable to pay remuneration to us in addition to any other costs or charges agreed if at any time unconditional contracts for sale of the property are exchanged with a purchaser introduced by us or a purchaser we had negotiations with during the period of agency. This will apply regardless of whether any other agent was appointed at the time of introduction or negotiation.

5. An introduction shall be deemed to have occurred if we initiate a person’s reaction to a property. This would generally be where we arrange a viewing, but an introduction is not limited to arranging a viewing.

6. Once this agreement is terminated you will still have a liability to pay our fees, where a buyer that we introduced goes on to exchange contracts on the property through another estate agent within 6 months of the date of termination. If no other estate agent is involved this time limit extends to 2 years.

7. Our standard minimum period of agency is 12 weeks, unless varied within the Confirmation of Instructions. After the agreed minimum period the agreement will continue until the property is sold or until it is terminated. Termination can be effected by either party giving 14 days written notice, subject to the agreed minimum period.

8. Our commission fee is outlined within the Confirmation of Instructions and the fee is based on the actual sale price.

9. Dual fee liability may occur where you have previously instructed another agent to sell the property, or where you instruct another agent to sell the property on sole agency or sole selling rights basis, during or after the termination of this agreement.

10. Our commission becomes due upon exchange of contracts and is payable upon completion of the sale, or 30 days after exchange should completion be delayed or not take place. Where there is no contract commission is due upon completion of sale.

11. You hereby authorise payment to be made by your solicitor once the commission becomes payable. (Subject to your statutory rights)

12. Where an account for justified commission, is not settled within 10 days of the due date, interest on the outstanding balance may be charged, at our discretion, on a daily basis, at the rate of 5% above The Bank of England annual base rate until payment is affected.

13. A valid Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) is required for all properties offered for sale.  The EPC must at least be commissioned before marketing commences and should be in place within 7 days. If it is not in place within 28 days, the property must be withdrawn from the market until the EPC is available.

14. A variety of marketing methods will be adopted, in your best interests and no additional costs will apply, unless discussed and agreed with you in writing beforehand.

15. Unless specific instructions to the contrary are provided, you hereby give us specific authority to erect a for sale board within the curtilage of the property. We accept liability for any claim arising in connection with the board, unless the action arises as a result of a further board being erected by another agent. The For Sale board will remain at all times our property.

16. Where any potential personal interest occurs, we must disclose details to any prospective buyer.   Personal interest means you have a business association, family relationship or other connection with this agency, or any employee. Please assist us by indicating any personal interest in the Confirmation of Instructions, if you are aware of any.

17. Prospective purchasers may be provided with a range of services including, estate agency or letting services, mortgage facilities, life insurance, property insurance, by us or third parties, for which fees or commission may be received. We will not discriminate against any prospective buyer because that person will not be, or is unlikely to be accepting services that we may (directly or indirectly)
provide.

18. We take no responsibility for maintenance, repairs or damage where the property is unoccupied, unless separately agreed, in writing.

19. You confirm that you will complete our property questionnaire to the best of your knowledge and where the property is leasehold, commonhold or a managed freehold you confirm you will contact the freeholder, lease administrator, commonhold association to obtain the information required in the questionnaire. A copy of the property details will be forwarded to you for approval. Under the consumer protection from unfair trading regulations anything we say or publish about your property must be accurate. It is therefore very important that you read the details carefully and immediately inform us if there is anything that is inaccurate. In addition, we are obliged to pass on any material information that would impact on a potential buyers’ transactional decision and so you must advise us of anything you feel is relevant to this. The brochure will be marked as a ‘’Draft – Awaiting Approval’’ until we receive your approval of content.

20. We are required by law to confirm your identity and the identity of any other beneficial owners of the property.  By entering into this agreement, you agree to provide us with any information or documents to meet this obligation. We can require sight of documentary proof of address, together with acceptable photographic ID, such as a passport or photo driving license. We can use an electronic verification system. This system allows us to verify you from basic details using electronic data, however it is not a credit check of any kind so will have no effect on you or your credit history.   We may use one or both methods. Copies/records may be taken and held on file. Additionally, we are required by law to confirm the identity of the buyer/s. By entering into this agreement, you agree to ensure we are provided with the names and addresses of your buyer/s to allow sufficient time prior to exchange of contracts for us to fulfil our obligation.

21. We will not discriminate against any person and will comply with the Equality Act 2010.

22. We are a member of The Property Ombudsman Scheme for estate agents (TPOS) and follow the Code of Practice. A copy of our complaints procedure is available on request.  By entering into this
agreement, you agree that if the Ombudsman asks for information about any aspect of our dealings with you we can provide the information; whether that be in relation to a complaint, or their monitoring process.  A copy of the TPOS Code of Practice and the Consumer Guide is available from www.tpos.co.uk

23. Notice of Right to Cancel – If you are a consumer client and this contract was not agreed within one of our branches you have the right to cancel this contract within 14 days without giving any reason. The cancellation period will expire after 14 days from the day this contract was agreed.   To exercise the right to cancel, you must inform us of your decision to cancel this contract by sending us a clear statement in writing to our local branch or emailing it to swale@harrisonsresidential.com. You may use the attached cancellation form, but it is not obligatory.   To meet the cancellation deadline, it is sufficient for you to send your communication concerning your exercise of the right to cancel before the cancellation period has expired.

24. Immediate Marketing – We are not legally permitted to market your property until the cancellation period has expired, unless you provide us with specific written permission to do so.  Please indicate in the Confirmation of Instructions how you would like us to proceed.

25. If you do request that we begin immediate marketing of your property during the cancellation period and you do exercise your right to cancel, you will be required to pay us an amount which is in proportion to what has been performed until you communicated your cancellation of the contract.  This will include the expenses incurred, plus any other reasonable costs. This charge will not exceed £220 including VAT, plus the cost of any EPC except where we introduce or have negotiations with the ultimate buyer of the property before you exercise your statutory right to cancel the contract. In such a case this contract will be deemed to have been fully performed and the agreed agency fee would be due, notwithstanding that cancellation took place.

26. This Agreement is governed by English law and is subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of England and Wales.